Irish Film Board’s Funding Choices Include Several Horror Titles

The latest round of films that have received funding from the Irish Film Board have been announced. First up is Fantastic Films and director Neasa Hardiman’s Sea Fever, which has received €700,000 in IFB production funding. The film is described, per SD, as, “…a very smart monster movie” and follows, “…a female protagonist, a gifted marine biology student who, along with her crew, encounter a large and dangerous mysterious sea creature.” Epic Pictures Group will be handling international sales.

Additionally, Without Name‘s Lorcan Finnegan has been funded €750,000 for Vivarium, a sci-fi thriller we wrote about in mid-May. The film follows, “…a couple desperate to get on the property ladder. They follow an estate agent to an out-of-town housing estate and find themselves unable to get out.”

Last on the slate, at least when it comes to horror, is The Hole In The Ground, Lee Cronin’s horror thriller for SP Films starring Seana Kerslake that received €600,000.

Disclaimer: Epic Pictures Group and Dread Central are affiliated. As a result, this post will not feature any opinions or personal commentary. We’re sticking to the facts here, folks!

Searching a world of darkness for a truth he was never ready for, a rogue detective (Dean S. Jagger) is murdered only to be reborn the ultimate killer. Embracing his destiny, vowing vengeance on all that destroyed his family; he is Corbin Nash, Demon Hunter.

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A few weekends back a friend of my grandmother’s approached me at a get-together and asked, “You’re the one who’s into horror movies, right?”

I said, “Yes, ma’am, I am.”

She says, “I saw that Winchester movie last night and loved it. You should see it as soon as possible.”

I thanked the kindly old woman and she went about her business. It was awesome.

It is with this in mind I’m chomping at the bit to see this horror movie that even my grandmother’s friends enjoyed. And I don’t have to wait much longer as today we have word that Winchester will be hitting Digital April 17 and Blu-ray/DVD May 1.

You can check out the cover art to the right and the disc’s soul special feature below. After that let us know what you thought of the film and if you plan to own it on Blu-ray!

Inspired by true events. On an isolated stretch of land 50 miles outside of San Francisco sits the most haunted house in the world. Built by Sarah Winchester, (Academy Award®-winner Helen Mirren) heiress to the Winchester fortune, it is a house that knows no end. Constructed in an incessant twenty-four hour a day, seven days a week mania for decades, it stands seven stories tall and contains hundreds of rooms. To the outsider, it looks like a monstrous monument to a disturbed woman’s madness. But Sarah is not building for herself, for her niece (Sarah Snook) or for the brilliant Doctor Eric Price (Jason Clarke) whom she has summoned to the house. She is building a prison, an asylum for hundreds of vengeful ghosts, and the most terrifying among them have a score to settle with the Winchesters…

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Contracted Director Eric England Accused of Assault

UPDATE: Eric England gave a very brief response, which we have added below.

This story discusses various forms of assault and, as such, readers should enter knowing that sensitive topics will be discussed.

In this time of #MeToo and #TimesUp, we are seeing more and more people come forward with stories of abuses they have suffered at the hands of people in power. From the women assaulted by Harvey Weinstein to Mariah Carey’s ex-security guard who accused her of sexual harassment to Timothy Heller’s accusations of rape at the hands of Melanie Martinez, people are coming forward with their stories of pain and hurt in the hopes of changing the status quo so that everyone can feel a little bit safer. Today, another story is added to this tragic list as actor Katie Stegeman has publicly accused director Eric England (Contracted, Josie, Madison County) of “…physically, emotionally, mentally, and sexually” abusing her over a three year period.

Taking to Instagram, Stegeman wrote the following passionate, empathetic, and heartfelt message:

The image Stegeman attached to her Instagram post.

“[Pause. What a pleasure. Deep Breath.] For many years I have been keeping this man’s secret from going public. For many years I had to make sure I was safe and of sound mind coming forward. I wanted to come from a place of kindness and without fear. Well, today is the day. For three years, director Eric England abused me physically, emotionally, mentally, and sexually. The irony of this photo is not lost on me. I was thrown into tables, choked until I couldn’t breathe, threatened with scissors, knives, screwdrivers, and was denied the right to turn this man down for sex for fear of, as he called it “awakening the beast.” To say I am lucky to be alive is an understatement. Sitting and watching the trailer for his latest movie #Josie is all the reminder I need to come forward. Impressionable, young amazing women like [Sophie Turner] should not be working with someone like him, and if I remain quiet, the pattern will continue. Eric, I hope this forces you to bow out gracefully and get the help you need. I know your team is aware of your history as well as the LAPD. It’s time to go and give way to the creatives of this town, who also know how to treat people when no one is looking. I want you to know I forgive you and thank you for reminding me how strong I am. I also want the people,who knew about Eric’s abuse and continued to work for him to know, that I forgive you too. But now you have a choice. From here on out I ask you to do the right thing…even though it’s impossible at times. I want to thank all the amazing people in my life, who stood by me no questions asked. Especially my amazing hero [Brett Pierce], who reminded me that great men still exist. I stayed quiet for the integrity of our movies, out of respect for your family, for fear of you running a smear campaign, for fear of you hurting me, for fear of you stopping my movie, for fear of you making sure no horror director would hire me, but I am no longer afraid. I will happily put my career aside, if it means saving someone’s life, because no one should ever have to go through what I endured. I hope you find your peace and come out of this a better man. Love and light.”

Josie refers to England’s latest film, which stars Sophie Turner and Dylan McDermott. The film follows the relationship between an older man and a high school girl who recently moves into the area. It was just released in limited theaters and on VOD.

Stegeman responded on her Instagram feed after receiving several comments of support, saying:
“I cannot thank you all enough for your support. Means we are getting to a better place of zero tolerance. Please do me a huge favor and still watch Josie. There are a lot of innocent people involved in this movie and residuals are how they pay their bills. All I ask is that moving forward, we do not create a platform to reward violence or manipulation. Let’s fill this void with greatness and do our damnedest to put excellence at the top…not just the loudest voice in the room. I am so so so lucky to be surrounded by people, who do what’s right…not what’s popular. I am beyond inspired by you all. There’s no need to bash Eric…no one person is all bad…it’s just simply his time to go. Keep sharing the message and the love!”

We at Dread Central take allegations like this very seriously but for clarity’s sake, we must also make it clear that England has not been officially charged. I want to personally highlight the powerful and empathetic presentation of Stegeman’s accusation. As she herself claims, she wanted to come at this from, “…a place of kindness and without fear.” I believe that she has done so and I laud her for that. Should these allegations be confirmed, I want to send her my best wishes on her road to recovery and to let her know that she is not alone. Already there are many voices lending their support in this difficult time.

We have reached out to England for a comment, who simply replied, “I’ll be releasing a statement soon.“